Main navigation

Why it’s better to be late than half baked

First impressions are the one thing you can’t ignore when it comes to selling what you’ve got.

That’s why it’s better to be apologising for your lateness in submitting that new Client proposal than submitting it half baked.

In reality punctuality shows that you respect the other person’s time and efforts. But giving them something that’s under par will mean your pitch is dead in the water even before you begin, no matter how punctual you are.

You’re better off delaying it and getting it right than not. You’ll always be forgiven for a late presentation is the product or service you’re spruiking is good.

First impressions are so important to any deal or sale that it’s the one thing I spend the most time on. Whatever you do after that is secondary by a long way.

As a producer, I’d spend days and weeks putting a demo together for record company executives. Getting things just right including the way the studio was setup and how the lights were to having the artist around or not depending on the context of the pitch. Funding was always a priority for any deal and so this part of the process almost eclipsed the actual album making. Well, not quite but almost. It was so important.

And so my focus on first impressions stayed with me long into my Marketing career.

Selling is fun. I enjoy it. Because its a game where if you play it right, both parties get exactly what they want and walk away fro the table happy.

The same goes with a pitch deck. Pitching to investors or potential partners relies on the same principle of first impressions.